Portable spotlight

ABSTRACT

A portable spotlight adapted for use as a spotlight inside a motor vehicle employed by law enforcement officers and being constructed for storage in a compartment when not in use. The spotlight is provided with a plug adapted to be connected into the cigarette lighter socket for the light to be electrically powered therefrom. The spotlight has an outwardly extending mounting post with a locking pin mounted adjacent the end opposite from the end mounting the spotlight and extending transversely to the longitudinal axis of the mounting post. A compression spring is seated on the mounting post for securely holding the spotlight in a preselected locked position. The spotlight coacts with a mounting plate located above the windshield and having apertures for receiving the mounting post and locking pin therethrough and readily rotatable into and out of locking position. The mounting post is releasably maintained in locked position through the compressive action of the compression spring.

tates t l [72] lnventor Eugene F. Peron 2024 Mayer-est Ave, SouthPasadena, Calif.9ll030 21 AppLNo. 718,470 [22] Filed Apr.3,l968 [45]Patented Apr.27,197l

[54] PORTABLESPOTLHGHT 1 Claim, 5 Drawing Figs.

[52] U.S.Cl 240/7.1R, 240/818, 240/521, 240/73, 248/220.5, 248/223 [51]lnt.Cl B60q l/24, F2lm3/00,F2lv2l/08 [50] FieldofSearch 240/7.1, 8.18,52, 52.1, 73 (QD); 248/2205, 243

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,140,855 12/1938 Scott240/7.l 1,082,079 12/1913 Goff 240/818 1,158,578 11/1915 Stearns240/8.18X 1,498,534 6/1924 Andersonetal. 240/8.18X 1,767,373 6/1930Kirlin 240/52X 2,773,973 l2/l956 Hoard et al. 240/4 3,008,039 11/1961Baldwin..... 240/52.1X 3,322,944 5/1967 Mellyn 240/818 2,688,289 9/1954Sterling 1. 105/369 Primary Examiner-Samuel S. Matthews AssistantExaminer-Kenneth C, Hutchinson Attorney-Christie, Parker and HaleABSTRACT: A portable spotlight adapted for use as a spotlight inside amotor vehicle employed by law enforcement officers and being constructedfor storage in a compartment when not in use. The spotlight is providedwith a plug adapted to be connected into the cigarette lighter socketfor the light to be electrically powered therefrom. The spotlight has anoutwardly extending mounting post with a locking pin mounted adjacentthe end opposite from the end mounting the spotlight and extendingtransversely to the longitudinal axis of the mounting post. Acompression spring is seated on the mounting post for securely holdingthe spotlight in a preselected locked position. The spotlight coactswith a mounting plate located above the windshield and having aperturesfor receiving the mounting post and locking pin therethrough and readilyrotatable into and out of locking position. The mounting post isreleasably maintained in locked position through the compressive actionof the compression spring.

Patented April 27, 1911 v 3,576,437

2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Patented 'April 27, 1971 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR.fMZ/(EFp ZM/ PORTABLE sroruom This invention relates to a portablespotlight for use with a motor vehicle and more particularly to aportable spotlight for use in law enforcement motor vehicles.

Spotlights are presently employed on motor vehicles and are mounted bothinteriorly and exteriorly of the driving compartment of the vehicle.Motor vehicles equipped with spotlights are employed by law enforcementofiicers in the conduct of their investigative activities and trafficcontrol operations. These spotlights are generally designed to provide ahigh intensity, narrow beam for illuminating a specific area or object.The law enforcement vehicles include what is commonly known as anundercover vehicle. It is preferable that the undercover vehicle appearno different than a conventional motor vehicle used for business orpleasure.

The undercover vehicles at the present time include spotlights that aremounted interiorly thereof for use by the law enforcement officer tocause the beam of the spotlight to project through the front windshield,for example. These spotlights are generally mounted on the motor vehicleproper and,

although the vehicle itself may not give the appearance of a vehiclebelonging to a law enforcement officer or governmental agency, the merepresence of the spotlight within the vehicle renders it suspicious ordifferent." Accordingly, a portable spotlight is desired that may bequickly mounted into position for use by an operator and moved out ofsight when not in use so that the vehicle will appear as any otherconventional motor vehicle.

The present invention provides an improved inexpensive and relativelysimple portable spotlight that is particularly adapted for use by lawenforcement officers and especially adaptable for undercover vehicles.The spotlight of the present invention may be stored in the glovecompartment of the motor vehicle and thereby out of sight and yetreadily mounted into position to allow the spotlight to be operated bythe law enforcement officer or user. The motor vehicle may be adaptedwith a spotlight mounting member secured thereto and preferably securedbehind the conventional sun visor of the motor vehicle so that it is outof sight when the spotlight is not in use. The spotlight per se may beof conventional construction and one that may be energized from theconventional cigarette lighter socket.

Structurally, the portable spotlight of the present invention comprisesa spotlight having an outwardly extending mounting post that is adaptedto be removably mounted to a preselected location within the motorvehicle and adapted to be energized from the cigarette lighterreceptacle of the vehicle. The spotlight includes means mounted insidethe vehicle for removably mounting a spotlight and allowing it to bevisible outside of the vehicle and yet rotatable for illuminatingvarious areas either through the front windshield or the back windshieldof the vehicle. Specifically, the portable spotlight may comprise amounting post constructed and defined at its outer end to be readilyconnected and disconnected to a mounting member and which constructionmay be a bayonetlike type construction for securing the mounting post ofthe spotlight to a mounting member when the two are interconnected. Themounting post may further carry means for securing and locking the postto the mounting member to allow the spotlight to be used as required.

These and other features of the present invention may be more fullyappreciated when considered in the light of the following specificationand drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a schematic illustration of a portion of the interior of amotor vehicle showing the portable spotlight of the presentinventionmounted in an operable relationship;

FIG. 2 is a partial side elevational view of the portable spotlight ofthe present invention showing a detached mountin member secured thereto;

FIG. 3 is a left-hand end view of the mounting member of the assembly ofFIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line 4-4 of I FIG. 3;and

FIG. 5 is an exploded view of another mounting member showing theinterrelationship of the mounting member and the connectable end of theportable spotlight of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1, the general organization of the present inventionas it relates to the interior of a motor vehicle as viewed from thefront seat thereof .will be examined. To this end, the front windshield10 is shown with the sun visors 11 and I2 movably mounted thereover. Inaddition, the conventional dashboard is illustrated with the cigarettelighter socket 13 mounted thereon. On the right-hand side of thedashboard there is illustrated a glove compartment exemplified by theclosure member 14 illustrated in a closed position. The portablespotlight 15 of the present invention is illustrated in a mountedrelationship with a mounting member 16 secured behind the sun visor 11.The spotlight 15 is further illustrated electrically connected to thecigarette lighter socket 13 and is arranged in an operative relationshipto cause the beam from the spotlight 15 to be projected through thefront windshield 10. The spotlight 15 is readily disconnected or snappedfrom the mounting member 116 and the cigarette lighter socket 13 so thatit can be stored inside the glove compartment and thereby out of sight.With the positioning of the sun visor 11, then, over the mounting member16, the interior of the motor vehicle will appear as any otherconventional passenger car particularly when viewed or examinedexteriorly of the vehicle. The importance of this is that suchconventional appearing motor vehicles may be adapted for using theportable spotlight of the present invention for undercover purposeswithout any evidence that the vehicle is being employed for lawenforcement purposes or the like.

The basic construction of the spotlight per se employed for the presentinvention is'of a commercially available construction and the details ofthe energizable lamp and the like will not be considered. The spotlight15 is commercially available with a protruding mounting post 17. Theelectrical energizing means for the lamp 15 is of conventionalconstruction and comprises electrical conduit means 18 having aconventional electrical cigarette lighter type socket 20 for insertionin lieu of the cigarette lighter in the receptacle 13. The spotlight 15may also have a conventional manually operated on and of? switch 21mounted thereto as illustrated. The mounting post 17 is constructed anddefined relative to the mounting member 16 to be removably lockedthereto to allow the spotlight 15 to be held in a relatively rigidrelationship when secured to the mounting member 16. For this purpose,the mounting post 17 is designed with a bayonetlike terminal comprisinga laterally extending pin 17" arranged adjacent the free end of the post17. To maintain the desired interlocked relationship between themounting member 16 and the mounting post 17, the mounting post carriesthe means for securing and locking the two together when interconnected.The locking means comprises a compression spring 22 mounted between apair of seating cups 23 and 24 arranged at the opposite ends of thespring 22 and carried by the post 17. A further seating cup 25 arrangedinteriorly of the cup 24 is mounted on the post and spaced thereon bymeans of the conventional fasteners 26 and 27 arranged at the interiorend of the post 17. The fasteners 26 and 27 may be positioned on thepost 17 to control the compressive, urging of the spring 22 through saidsecuring means. It will be appreciated that when the spotlight 15 is notmounted to the mounting member 16 that the seating element 23 ispositioned against the locking pin 17" as a result of the compressiveurging provided by the spring 22.

The mounting member 16 can be best appreciated from examining FIGS. 3and 4. The mounting member 16 may be a plate provided with a pair ofmounting apertures 16" and 16 for securing the spotlight 15 by means ofconventional fasteners over the windshield 10, as illustrated in FIG. 1.The plate 16, however, may be secured in an operative relationship inany conventional fashion. The construction and definition of themounting member 16 for receiving the mounting post 17 is such that amounting post receiving aperture 16 is provided and having a circularconfiguration with radially extending slots 16" to receive and passtherethrough the mounting pins 17". On the side of the mounting plate 16opposite to the mounting post entry side there is provided the mountingslot 16' arranged orthogonally with respect to the slot 16". The slots16', however, do not extend completely through the member 16 but aremerely of a sufficient depth to receive and secure the pin 17 thereto.

With the above construction in mind, then, the method of interlockingthe mounting post 17 to the mounting member 16 should be evident. whenthe operator of the motor vehicle or the law enforcement officer desiresto use the spotlight 15, he need merely remove the light from the glovecompartment or from some similar storage location and move the sun visor11 to a position to expose the mounting member 16. The mounting post 17is then aligned with the mounting aperture 16 for the mounting plate 16to allow the mounting post and the pin 17" in particular to be passedtherethrough to abut the opposite face of the mounting plate 16. Uponrotation of the mounting post 17 a quarter of a turn, the mounting pin17 will be aligned and be received within the securing slot 16'. As aresult of the compressive action of the spring 22, this interlockedrelationship will be maintained. lt should also be noted that when thespotlight 15 is mounted in this fashion that the lamp is oriented sothat the beam therefrom passes directly through the front windshieldonto the selected spot or image. After positioning the spotlight in thisfashion, connector will be inserted into the cigarette lighterreceptacle 13 for energizing the lamp which may be controlled by meansof the on-off" switch 21. It should also be evident that with thismounting of the lamp that it may be rotated l80 so that the beam fromthe spotlight 15 is directed through the back windshield (not shown).Such illumination is advantageous for traffic control vehicles that arestopped on a highway or freeway to signal their position.

Another embodiment of the mounting plate 16 is illustrated in FIG 5. Thegeneral construction of the mounting plate illustrated in FIG. 5 issimilar to the mounting plate 16 except that it is constructed in twopieces. The two-piece construction is provided to give a better holdingaction for the mounting post 17 of the spotlight 15. For this purpose,an entry mounting plate 30 is provided with a receiving aperture 30having the same configuration as the aperture 16 to receive and pass thelocking pin 17" of the mounting post 17. The second plate is identifiedby the reference numeral 30 and is provided with a similar mountingaperture 30 arranged in alignment with the aperture 30 for the plate30'. This aperture 30' is the same general configuration as thatdescribed for the mounting plate 16. It should be appreciated that withthe securing of the plates 30' and 30 in a side-by-side relationship,that the locking action relative to the mounting pin 17 is identical tothat described in the previous embodiment.

lclaim:

1. A portable spotlight adapted for use as a spotlight inside of a motorvehicle employed by law enforcement officers as an undercover vehicle,the vehicle having a windshield, a cigarette lighter adjacent thewindshield and a storage compartment, the spotlight being constructedand defined for storage in the compartment when not in use, thespotlight comprising an energizable spotlight having an outwardlyextending mounting post,

the spotlight including electrical means adapted to be connected intothe cigarette lighter socket to be electrically powered therefrom, themounting post being constructed and defined for securely locking thespotlight adjacent to the windshield for illumination in a directionrelated to the windshield in a nonpermanent relationship,

the mounting post having locking means comprising a locking pin mountedadjacent an end of the mounting post opposite from the end mounting thespotlight and extending transversely to the longitudinal axis of themounting post and compression spring means seated thereon for securelyholding the spotlight in a preselected locked position when the lockingmeans is placed in a locked position through the urging of thecompression spring means including when the vehicle is traveling at highspeeds yet allowing the spotlight to be rotated in its locked positionor completely unlocked therefrom,

the mounting post further carrying seating means for the spring andsecuring means for securing the spring between the seating means inyieldable abutting relationship with the locking pin and for controllingthe compressive urging of the spring through said securing means, and

a flat mounting plate adapted to be secured behind the sun visor overthe windshield of" the motor vehicle and adapted to secure the lockingpin therein, the mounting plate having a first aperture for receivingthe end of the mounting post therethrough and a second aperturecommunicating with the first aperture for receiving the transverselocking pin therethrough and upon rotation of the pin out of alignmentwith the second aperture when positioned therein causing theinterengagement of the pin and mounting plate thereby locking the pin tothe mounting plate and maintained in locked position in response to thecompressive action of said spring acting through said seating meansengaging the opposite side of the mounting plate from the locking pinand yet readily released from the mounting plate upon rotation of themounting post to position the pin into alignment with the secondaperture of the plate.

1. A portable spotlight adapted for use as a spotlight inside of a motorvehicle employed by law enforcement officers as an undercover vehicle,the vehicle having a windshield, a cigarette lighter adjacent thewindshield and a storage compartment, the spotlight being constructedand defined for storage in the compartment when not in use, thespotlight comprising an energizable spotlight having an outwardlyextending mounting post, the spotlight including electrical meansadapted to be connected into the cigarette lighter socket to beelectrically powered therefrom, the mounting post being constructed anddefined for securely locking the spotlight adjacent to the windshieldfor illumination in a direction related to the windshield in anonpermanent relationship, the mounting post having locking meanscomprising a locking pin mounted adjacent an end of the mounting postopposite from the end mounting the spotlight and extending transverselyto the longitudinal axis of the mounting post and compression springmeans seated thereon for securely holding the spotlight in a preselectedlocked position when the locking means is placed in a locked positionthrough the urging of the compression spring means including when thevehicle is traveling at high speeds yet allowing the spotlight to berotated in its locked position or completely unlocked therefrom, themounting post further carrying seating means for the spring and securingmeans for securing the spring between the seating means in yieldableabutting relationship with the locking pin and for controlling thecompressive urging of the spring through said securing means, and a flatmounting plate adapted to be secured behind the sun visor over thewindshield of the motor vehicle and adapted to secure the locking pintherein, the mounting plate having a first aperture for receiving theend of the mounting post therethrough and a second aperturecommunicating with the first aperture for receiving the transverselocking pin therethrough and upon rotation of the pin out of alignmentwith the second aperture when positioned therein causing theinterengagement of the pin and mounting plate thereby locking the pin tothe mounting plate and maintained in locked position in response to thecompressive action of said spring acting through said seating meansengaging the opposite side of the mounting plate from the Locking pinand yet readily released from the mounting plate upon rotation of themounting post to position the pin into alignment with the secondaperture of the plate.